Majority of today’s pastors have been abusing the use of anointing oil, the Chairman of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle Prof Opoku Onyinah has said.

Addressing a group of religious scholars during the Heads’ Meeting of the Church at the Pentecost Convention Centre at Gomoa Fetteh in the Central region, he said the use of anointing oil for either divine healing or ordination is no longer of special value in Christianity.

He lamented the recent “abuse” of the oil by some pastors, insisting the Church of Pentecost discourages its sale.

The Apostle said: “The Church of Pentecost believes that the use of oil in the Old Testament symbolises the Holy Spirit.

“Therefore, in as much as the Holy Spirit has been poured upon all believers, the use of oil either for divine healing or ordination is of no special value. Consequently, as a result of the many cases of the abuse of the use of oil, including the sale of it, The Church of Pentecost discourages the use of oil.”

He added that “in the healing ministry of Jesus, He never anointed the sick with oil”.

According to him, “the apostles used oil once when Jesus sent them to go and preach (Mark 6:13). Since Jesus was not practising that, it could be that the apostles did this, from their Jewish background. After the death and resurrection of Christ, we did not see the apostles who were with our Lord Jesus anointing the sick with oil for healing purposes”.